Cauliflower is one of several vegetables in the species Brassica oleracea, in the family Brassicaceae. It is an annual plant that reproduces by seed. Typically, only the head (the white curd) is eaten. The cauliflower head is composed of a white inflorescence meristem. Cauliflower heads resemble those in broccoli, which differs in having flower buds. Its name is from Latin ‘caulis’ (cabbage) and flower. Brassica oleracea also includes cabbage, brussels sprouts, kale, broccoli, and collard greens, though they are of different cultivar groups.
There are four major groups of cauliflower (Crisp, P. (1982). “The use of an evolutionary scheme for cauliflowers in screening of genetic resources”. Euphytica 31 (3): 725).
Italian
Diverse in appearance, and biennial and annual in type, this group includes white, Romanesco, various green, purple, brown and yellow cultivars. This type is the ancestral form from which the others were derived.
Northwest European Biennial
Used in Europe for winter and early spring harvest, this was developed in France in the 19th century, and includes the old cultivars Roscoff and Angers.
Northern European Annuals
Used in Europe and North America for summer and autumn harvest, it was developed in Germany in the 18th century, and includes the old cultivars Erfurt and Snowball.
Asian
A tropical cauliflower used in China and India, it was developed in India during the 19th century and includes old varieties Early Patna and Early Benaras.
There are hundreds of historic and current commercial varieties used around the world.
Cauliflowers are available in different colours:                i. White, which is the most common colour of cauliflower.        ii. Orange (B. oleracea L. var. botrytis) which contains 25% more vitamin A than white varieties. This trait came from a natural mutant found in a cauliflower field in Canada (Dickson, M. H., Lee C. Y., Blamble A. E. (1988), “Orange-curd high carotene cauliflower inbreds, NY 156, NY 163, and NY 165”. HortScience 23: 778-779). Cultivars include ‘Cheddar’ and ‘Orange Bouquet’.        iii. Green cauliflower, of the B. oleracea botrytis group, is sometimes called broccoflower. It is available both with the normal curd shape and a variant spiky curd called Romanesco broccoli. Both types have been commercially available in the U.S. and Europe since the early 1990s. Green-curded varieties include ‘Alverda’, ‘Green Goddess’ and ‘Vorda’. Romanesco varieties include ‘Minaret’ and ‘Veronica’.        iv. Purple cauliflower, the colour of which is caused by the presence of the antioxidant group anthocyanins, which can also be found in red cabbage and red wine (Chiu, L., Prior, R. L., Wu, X., Li, L. (Jul. 16, 2005), “Toward Identification of the Candidate Gene Controlling Anthocyanin Accumulation in Purple Cauliflower (Brassica oleracea L. var. botrytis)”. American Society of Plant Biologists Annual Meeting. p. 628). Varieties include ‘Graffiti’ and ‘Purple Cape’. In Great Britain and southern Italy, a broccoli with tiny flower buds is sold as a vegetable under the name “purple cauliflower”. However, it is not the same as cauliflower with a purple curd.        
Cauliflower is low in fat, low in carbohydrates but high in dietary fiber, folate, water, and vitamin C. It possesses a high nutritional density. Approximate nutritional data is provided in Table 1
TABLE 1Nutritional data for cauliflowerNutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)Energy104kJ (25 kcal)Carbohydrates5gSugars1.9gDietary fiber2gFat0.3gProtein1.9gWater92gThiamine (vit. B1)0.05mg (4%)Riboflavin (vit. B2)0.06mg (5%)Niacin (vit. B3)0.507mg (3%)Pantothenic acid (B5)0.667mg (13%)Vitamin B60.184mg (14%)Folate (vit. B9)57μg (14%)Vitamin C48.2mg (58%)Vitamin E0.08mg (1%)Vitamin K15.5μg (15%)Calcium22mg (2%)Iron0.42mg (3%)Magnesium15mg (4%)Manganese0.155mg (7%)Phosphorus44mg (6%)Potassium299mg (6%)Sodium30mg (2%)Zinc0.27mg (3%)
Cauliflower contains several phytochemicals, common in the cabbage family, that may be beneficial to human health, such as sulforaphane (Liu, R H (2004) “Potential synergy of phytochemicals in cancer prevention: mechanism of action”, The Journal of nutrition 134 (12 Suppl): 3479S-3485S). A high intake of cauliflower has been associated with reduced risk of aggressive prostate cancer (Kirsh V A, Peters U, Mayne S T, Subar A F, Chatterjee N, Johnson C C, Hayes R B (2007), “Prospective study of fruit and vegetable intake and risk of prostate cancer, Journal of the National Cancer Institute 99 (15): 1200-9).
Cauliflower can be roasted, boiled, fried, steamed, microwaved or eaten raw. Steaming or microwaving better preserves the potential anti cancer compounds than boiling (Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick (2007-05-15). “Research Says Boiling Broccoli Ruins Its Anti Cancer Properties”, http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/newsandevents/pressreleases/research_says_boiling/). Boiling reduces the levels of these compounds, with losses of 20-30% after five minutes, 40-50% after ten minutes, and 75% after thirty minutes. However, other preparation methods, such as steaming, microwaving, and stir frying, have no significant effect on the compounds.
When cooking, the outer leaves and thick stalks are removed, leaving only the florets. The leaves are also edible, but are most often discarded. The florets should be broken into similar-sized pieces so they are cooked evenly.
Cauliflower may be used as a substitute for rice. Whilst cauliflower can produce a similar texture, or mouth feel to rice, it lacks the starch. Owing to the low fat, low carbohydrate and high nutrient properties of cauliflower, this is particularly relevant for those restricting dietary intake of carbohydrate, fat and/or calories or increasing dietary intake of phytochemicals. Typically, fresh cauliflower curd is processed until it is the size of rice, either using a food processor, a hand-held grater, or a knife. This rice-like cauliflower is then cooked using conventional methods to produce a cooked, rice-like cauliflower derived product, hereinafter “cauliflower rice”.
However, it is a problem with known methods for producing cauliflower rice that as soon as the product is produced, it subsequently begins to discolour and produce odorous volatile chemicals which are undesirable for the consumer. The product is therefore unsuitable for prolonged storage.
Cooked white cauliflower curds begin to discolour to a variety of colours from tan to pink. The colouration is attributed to the expression of carotene, chlorophyll and anthocyanins precursors which are present in orange, green, and purple cauliflower varieties from genes which are dormant in white cauliflower prior to cooking.
It is also known that the black discolouration which may be observed in processed cauliflower is attributable to the interaction between polyphenolic compounds in the cells, in particular flavonols, with an external source of metal ions. Cell wall destruction is found to be necessary for the interaction (Advances in Food Research, Volume 19, Emil Marcel Mrak, C. O. Chichester, George Franklin Stewart, Academic Press, 29 Oct. 1971).
The characteristic odour associated with cooked cauliflower is associated with the decomposition products of glucosinolates. These include alkyl cyanides such as 4-(methylthio)butyl cyanide and 4-(methylthio)butyl isothiocyanate from glucoerucin and 3-(methylthio)propylcyanide and 3-(methylthio)propylisothiocyanate from glucoibeverin.
Some people find the odour and/or taste of certain vegetables to be unpleasant. Accordingly, a vegetable-based product that has a reduced odour and/or taste would be advantageous. Additionally or alternatively, a vegetable-based product that does not discolour or otherwise deteriorate, degrade or rot for a period of time upon storage would also be advantageous.